STRI, formerly the Sports Turf Research Institute, is a consultancy for the development of sports surfaces, based in St Ives,

Bingley Bingley is a market town and civil parish in the metropolitan borough of the City of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, on the River Aire and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal, which had a population of 18,294 at the 2011 Census. Bingley railwa ...

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...

, England, providing advice on the research, design, construction and management of both

natural Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. Although humans are p ...

and artificial sports fields of play around the world.

History

STRI was established in the UK in 1929 in response to

The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews is one of the oldest golf clubs in the world. It is a private members-only club based in St Andrews in Scotland. It was previously known colloquially as "The R&A", but in 2004, a new organisation kn ...

wanting improved greens. Originally, the new outfit rented rooms in St Ives mansion, before moving out into new buildings on the same estate. The institute now operates globally out of three research and design hubs in United Kingdom, Qatar and the Redlands Research Station in

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

, Australia, servicing over 2,000 clients annually. STRI clients include sports venues, international tournaments, sports governing bodies, sports club owners and facilities managers, local authorities and schools. They provide advice and consultancy to the

All England Club The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, also known as the All England Club, based at Church Road, Wimbledon, London, England, is a private members' club. It is best known as the venue for the Wimbledon Championships, the only Grand Slam te ...

for each years

Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...

championships, and have historically been advisors to the FIFA football World Cup. In June 1961,

Prince Philip Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 1921 – 9 April 2021) was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he served as the consort of the British monarch from E ...

became the patron of the institute. STRI capabilities include R&D, design, consultancy and sustainability disciplines. The headquarters of the STRI is in St Ives, near to

, where they have dedicated to turf research. In 2019, a new office was opened in Hong Kong, which is tied into the Chinese governments' drive to build 60,000 sports pitches.

Specialities

Research & Development, Sports Surfaces Design & Construction, Product Testing & Material Analysis, Stadia Pitch Design and Management, Agronomy & Ecology, Sportsturf Consultancy, Planning, Drainage & Irrigation, Aviation, Environment, Green Spaces, Training. From 2014 through to 2018, the STRI advised the Commonwealth War Graves Commission on turf related matters in the run up to the 100 year commemorations of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. This included over 23,000 locations in 153 countries.

Notable sporting events

(1990–present) *

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...

, 2010 *

London Olympics 2012 The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

References

{{Authority control Companies based in the City of Bradford Grasses Research institutes in West Yorkshire 1929 establishments in the United Kingdom Research institutes in the United Kingdom